Dried at -5°C for 24 hours — Far East Hotel’s is Taiwan’s only fruitwood-hung oven-roasted Peking duck

▲The Peking duck at Shangri-La’s Far East International Hotel is the only one in the country roasted using the hearth-hanging method. (Photo / Reporter Huang Kexiang)

Reported by Huang Shiyuan / Taipei

When it comes to Peking duck, there are many delicious options across Taiwan, but those roasted using the hearth-hanging method are likely limited to Shangri-La’s Far East International Hotel. In 2012, the chefs from the Xiang Palace at Far East Hotel went to Kerry Hotel Beijing to learn from Chef Yuan Chaoying, the master of oven-roasted Peking duck. Upon returning, they quickly constructed a rare brick oven in the hotel. Chef Zhong Xiangming from Xiang Palace noted that the even temperature of the brick oven, along with the use of longan wood, gives the duck its crispy exterior and tender interior, bursting with fragrance.

The Xiang Palace at Far East Hotel uses Yilan cherry ducks (40-day-old), each weighing around 3 kilograms after processing. The processed ducks are stuffed with spices in their bellies to enhance aroma and flavor, then marinated overnight. Next, the skin is blanched and brushed with maltose syrup to give the duck a glossy, golden hue after roasting. Chef Zhong Xiangming explained that the ducks are then air-dried for 24 hours in a low-temperature chamber at -5°C to dry the skin, ensuring a perfectly crisp result.

▲The Peking duck at Xiang Palace is sliced with both skin and meat. (Photo / Reporter Huang Kexiang)

Before placing the duck in the hearth, Chef Zhong Xiangming preheats the longan wood fire for at least 30 minutes, then roasts the dried duck for about 60 minutes. During the roasting process, he continuously adjusts the angle of the heat to ensure even cooking.

Chef Zhong Xiangming said the roasted duck is served to guests as quickly as possible, sliced with both skin and meat. He noted that the breast is the most tender and meaty part of the duck. Essentially, once the breast is sliced, there’s not much duck left. As for the legs, he recommends making them into “ginger-scallion stir-fried double thighs.”

▲The breast is the most tender part of the Peking duck. (Photo / Reporter Huang Kexiang)

Since tastes vary, Xiang Palace offers not only white sugar, sweet bean sauce, shredded scallions, and cucumber strips, but also a black pepper dipping sauce. Generally, aside from eating the sliced duck alone, the most common way to enjoy it is by wrapping the duck meat with scallions and cucumber in a pancake. However, Chef Zhong Xiangming says that dipping the duck in white sugar best cuts through the richness—especially the duck skin, which becomes crispy and sweet.

Although the Peking duck at Xiang Palace was learned from the renowned Peking duck chef Yuan Chaoying in Beijing, it has been adapted to suit Taiwanese palates—for example, stuffing the duck with spices, adding a black pepper dipping sauce, and incorporating oyster sauce into the sweet bean paste.

Whether it’s a one-duck-two-eats, one-duck-three-eats, or one-duck-four-eats set at Xiang Palace, the price is NT$2,400.

Xiang Palace’s Peking duck slicing chef at work

 

▲Lettuce with shredded duck (Photo / Reporter Huang Kexiang)


▲Ginger-scallion stir-fried double thighs (Photo / Reporter Huang Kexiang)


▲The roasted duck is served to the table as quickly as possible and sliced with skin and meat. (Photo / Reporter Huang Kexiang)


▲The most common way to eat Peking duck: slices with sweet bean sauce, served with cucumber and scallions wrapped in a pancake. (Photo / Reporter Huang Kexiang)


Peking Duck at Xiang Palace, Shangri-La’s Far East International Hotel
Address: 6F, No. 201, Section 2, Dunhua South Road, Da’an District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-23788888
Peking duck price: NT$2,400